


The Prince's Rose

by GuitarAngel



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-07-24 09:22:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16172222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GuitarAngel/pseuds/GuitarAngel
Summary: Prince Harry's love disappeared, but what happens when a hurt and lost young girl with amnesia who has a striking resemblance to his love stumbles into his life two months later?





	1. Chapter 1

Since as long as he could remember Harry had always taken his job seriously, but he enjoyed the social side of things more. He liked to be down in the village talking with the people and joining in with the festivities during special holidays. He wanted them to know that he didn’t forget about them and that they were his priority.

Princess Rosalie was the same way, though she was across the English Channel in France instead of England where Harry lived. She had always been kind to everyone she met so the people adored her, which made her disappearance so heartbreaking.

During her trip to visit Harry over the holidays she vanished on the voyage to England. Her parents were getting restless, sending out a majority of their army to search the entire country for her but came up empty handed for weeks. They sent messages to all nearby countries asking for help in their search, most of which agreed to help their ally while others just didn’t care.

When Prince Harry had heard the news he felt upset because he had met the princess a few times when he was young. Their parents had met to rework treaties and whatnot while the children played, becoming great friends. They had been writing each other since then, but it had been years since he had seen her in person so even if he did want to look he had no idea what she looked like as a young adult.

Weeks after her disappearance he had asked his guards to accompany him on a morning ride through the surrounding land, hoping to clear his head. It had been a stressful few weeks so he needed a breath of fresh air and to be away for a few hours.

“You seem to be a bit tense, Harry. Everything alright?” Liam, one of his most trusted friends, asked him.

“I'm fine… it's just… Rosalie has been missing for nearly two months now and I'm starting to think she'll never be found.” Harry sighed.

“She’s a strong girl. I'm sure wherever she is she’ll be fine.” Niall, his other friend and guard, assured him.

Harry simply nodded, about to speak again but a rustling among the trees made him stop instantly. The group came to a halt and the guards immediately put themselves around the prince to protect him if they needed to. Louis was about to draw his sword when Harry ordered him to stop.

His eyes landed on a barefoot girl as she stumbled out of the trees and into the path in front of them. She wore a torn dress that barely covered her body and was covered in mud and what looked like blood which seeped out of wounds from her forehead as well as her side where a deep cut was.

“Please. Help me.” She breathed out before collapsing in exhaustion.

Harry had already dismounted his horse and rushed to catch her before her head hit the ground and caused her more injuries. He immediately took off his jacket and wrapped it around the frail girl to keep her warm in the cool morning air. 

“Liam help me get her on my horse.” Harry said as he lifted her into his arms and carried her towards the group.

“But Harry-” he started, thinking this was some sort of trap because the country knew how kind the prince was so they could easily use this girl as a distraction or she could be the one using his kindness against him. 

“That's an order.” Harry said firmly.

Liam glanced at his friends and sighed before doing as he was told. They got the girl up onto the horse then Harry climbed up to sit behind her, holding her steady with his arm around her waist while the other held the reins. Her lead fell back against his shoulder limply as she slept and he couldn't help but wonder what the hell happened to her.

When they arrived back at the castle he ordered Niall to fetch the doctor while he carried the girl up to his bedroom, ignoring the stares he received from the other people who worked in the castle. The doctor rushed in a moment later as Harry was cleaning the girl’s face and around the cut to give the doctor some space to work with. He stepped back to allow him to do his job, sighing as his mother walked in. 

“Harry what were you thinking? Bringing a girl like that into the castle. What if she’s a spy?” she asked him. 

“Look at her, mum. She needs help and no spy is going to do that to themselves. She looks like she’s been starved and beaten judging by those old bruises on her body. I couldn't just leave her.” he argued.

“If you don't mind could the two of you speak outside please?” The doctor asked.

The two nodded and stepped out to let the man do his work, arguing for a few more minutes until his mother finally let out a sigh and cupped her son’s cheeks.

“Be careful, please. Don't let her get to your head.” she said as she kissed his forehead then walked away to speak with her husband.

Harry sighed and sat against the wall outside his bedroom door waiting for the doctor to finish. When he finally did he asked the maids to clean her and dress her in something a little more appropriate so she wasn’t so exposed. After that was done he stepped inside and took a seat next to the girl who laid peacefully on his bed, taking in how beautiful she looked. She was still quite dirty due to the fact that the maids couldn’t properly bathe her, but from what he could see she was beautiful.

What worried him was how thin she was. It was like she hadn’t eaten in weeks and there were bruises on her arms that didn’t seem more than a few days old. The poor girl must have been through hell to escape wherever she came from. He gently brushed some hair from her face then left the room to use one next door so the girl could get some rest. The whole time he was gone he couldn’t help but think about how familiar she seemed, but he couldn’t quite figure out why.


	2. 2

Harry’s POV

I woke with a start, hearing the sounds of screams coming from the room next door. Without a second thought I ran over to my bedroom and saw the girl cowering in the corner of the room while a maid and the doctor tried to calm her down.

“N No! Get away from me!” She cried as she pressed herself further into the wall.

The french accent was faint, but I still heard it and it made me wonder where she came from.

“Miss, you need to get back into bed or you'll rip your stitches.” The doctor tried to reason with her as he reached out for her but she screamed again.

“Enough.” I finally spoke, catching their attention. “Clara… George... Leave us please.”

They nodded and left us alone in the room. I kept my eyes on the terrified girl in front of me, staying still so she would relax.

“He is right you know. You'll have to rest and get your strength back so we can get you back home.” I said softly.

“Home?” She asked, furrowing her brows slightly.

“Yes. Can you tell us where you live? I'm sure your family is worried.” I said as I took a couple steps closer.

“I… I don't know. I can't remember. Where am I? How did I get here?”

I could see the fear wash over her features as she struggled to remember anything that happened before she woke up this morning. Her eyes filled with tears and I didn’t hesitate to walk over and kneel in front of her.

“Shh. It's alright, love. The doctor said you hit your head pretty hard. It’s normal for you to have some memory loss and I'm sure it'll return soon. In the meantime you need to rest and get your strength back. You're welcome here and I'll make sure you're safe. I promise. Now let’s get you back into bed.”

I stood up and reached my hand down to help her to her feet. She seemed hesitant, but slowly reached up to clasp my hand so I could lift her to her feet. After carefully getting her back into bed I covered her up then poured her a cup of water so she could drink.

“I'm Harry by the way. Do you remember your name?” I asked.

She looked down at her cup and quietly shook her head. My heart broke as her eyes filled with tears. I could only imagine how hard it must be to not remember anything.

“Hey. It'll be alright. We can give you a temporary name for now until you remember. What about…” I trailed off, glancing over at the rose garden. “Rose.”

“Rose?” She asked, seeming to be lost in thought for a moment before she nodded. “Okay. I like that.”

A faint smile grew on her lips and I smiled in return.

“Rose it is then. I'll go see about getting you some food. Is there anything in particular that you want?” I asked.

“Um… I don't know. I don't remember what I like, but at this point anything is good.” She said as she looked over at me.

“Right. I'll get something ready for you. Just please stay in bed and rest.” I said.

She nodded then I finally got up and left the room to make sure the cook could prepare something for her. The poor girl was so weak and definitely needed to gain her strength back. Eventually I returned with the food to find her asleep, but she was tossing and turning with a cold sweat glistening on her forehead. I frowned and quickly put the tray down then gently touched her arm.

“Rose… Rose wake up.” I said softly.

Her body jolted as she woke up and she cried out for me to leave her alone, but when she finally realized where she was she let out a sob of relief and clung to me. I froze for a moment, surprised that she was hugging me but it didn’t take long for me to wrap my arms around her tiny body. 

“Shh. It's okay. You're safe.” I said softly as I rubbed her back.

For some reason this situation felt familiar. I remembered years ago when I was a child Rosalie came over and she had gotten lost in the garden. I had been the one to find her so she clung to me and cried so hard. I comforted her until our parents found us and ever since then I felt a need to protect her. Even now with Rose I felt that same urge.

Thinking about Rosalie made me wonder if this girl could possibly be her. I pulled back to look at her, gently wiping the tears from her cheeks with my thumbs. Now that I had a chance I looked into her bright blue eyes which were the exact shade of blue that Rosalie had. It couldn’t be her… could it?

“Rosalie?” I asked quietly, waiting for her reaction.

“What did you call me?” She seemed confused and I sighed softly.

“Nothing… Anyway I brought you food.” I said as I pulled back to grab the tray, setting it on her lap.

“Thank you.” She said softly as she took a small bite.

“What was your dream about? If you don't mind me asking.” I asked after a moment.

“I… I think it was a memory. I was chained up in this cold room and it was so dark. I couldn’t see anything. But I remember this man… He… He would come in and talk to me sometimes. He said such horrible things. I I could feel his hands on me and I don't remember the rest because you woke me up.” She said, allowing a tear to fall down her cheek which I quickly wiped away with my thumb.

“I'm sorry that happened to you… but I promise you that I will protect you from now on. I'm going to keep you safe and I'm going to help you get back to your family.” I assured her.

“If I even have one… I don't remember them if I do. How can I forget my family?” She sniffled and teared up again.

I couldn’t do much else besides give her what little comfort I could offer. It must be horrible for her to not have any memories apart from awful ones of her captors doing god knows what to her. I only wish I could do more for her.


	3. 3

Rose’s POV

It has been a few weeks since Prince Harry found me in the woods and I was slowly gaining my strength back. He was so sweet and patient with me, trying everything he could to jog a memory but nothing was working. I knew he wanted me to remember, but with the nightmares I had been having I wasn’t sure I wanted to. Usually I woke up before anything too bad happened, but there was a fear of reliving the bad parts that kept me from wanting to remember at all. The nightmares are the exact reason why I found myself sitting in the garden next to the well in the center of it.

“Rose! There you are. What are you doing out here this late?” Harry asked me as he walked over to me.

“Couldn't sleep. I'm sorry I worried you.” I said softly as I pulled the blanket I had around my body closer to keep myself from getting colder.

“You'll catch a cold out here, love. May I?” he asked as he looked over at me, motioning towards the seat beside me.

I nodded and watched him sit down then he shrugged off his jacket and draped it over my shoulders. I opened my mouth to argue but he put his finger to my lips to silence me before I could.

“Ah ah ah. You're still in recovery which means you could catch a cold far quicker than I could. Don't argue with me.” He said.

I furrowed my brows and pouted at him which only made his smile widen.

“Put that lip away before I make you.” He teased.

“Make me? How would you make me?” I asked curiously.

“I have my ways…” He murmured, glancing down at my lips.

The way he was looking at me made butterflies form in my stomach. He leaned in slightly but instead of kissing my lips he lifted his head to place one on my forehead.

“Do you want to talk about your dream?” he asked.

I sighed and shook my head as I looked down at the stone path under my feet, gently kicking a few petals away.

“You won't be able to remember until you get yourself past this block you have on your mind. Get past the fear and then you'll remember all of the good things.” He said softly.

“And what if I can't? What if the only thing I remember is what that awful man did to me? Those are horrible memories, Harry. From what little I remember I don't want to remember the rest.”

“Alright. If that's what you choose to do then we will make good memories to replace the bad. I'll help you… starting now.” He grinned as he stood up. 

“What are you doing?” I asked him as he held his hand out to me.

“I'm asking a beautiful girl for a dance under the moonlight.” He smiled.

I blushed at his compliment, smiling softly as I reached out to place my small hand in his large one. His hand looked giant compared to mine yet they fit together so perfectly. I stood and let the blanket and jacket fall off my shoulders but I did slip the jacket back on so I could stay warm. Once I stood close to him he placed his hand on my waist while the other held my hand. I placed my free hand on his shoulder and smiled softly as I followed his lead, dancing around the small open area with ease.

“So apparently you know how to dance quite well.” Harry mused.

“I suppose I do.” I smiled back and as I looked at him I suddenly found myself in a ballroom staring up at a boy who looked annoyed because he was being forced to do something he didn’t want to.

“Do I have to?” He huffed.

“Yes. You need the practice and she is already here so you might as well practice with a partner.” A woman who I assumed was his mentor ordered him. 

“Fine. Just don't step on my toes again, Rosie.”

“You're not that great of a dancer either.” I spoke aloud the same time as the girl in my memory and it caused Harry to stop and snap me out of it.

“Well geez. Thanks.” Harry chuckled.

“What? Oh my god. I'm sorry. I just… I think I remembered something. There was this boy who didn’t really want to dance with me but this woman made him and he told me not to step on his toes… he called me-”

“Rosie…” Harry finished, his eyes growing wider. “Oh my god, it really is you…” 

He laughed and pulled me into a tight hug but it only left me even more confused.

“Um… am I missing something here?” I asked him. 

“You still don't remember? Come here. I'll show you.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me back inside, racing up the stairs until we finally got to the King’s study which I had never been in before.

“Harry, I don't think we should be in here.” I said nervously, but when he moved me in front of a painting I froze. “That’s him. It’s the boy from my memory.”

“That's me, Rosie. The boy in your memory was me. Miss Laura always made me practice dancing and when you came to visit with your parents she made me practice with you. You always used to step on my toes because you were so uncoordinated.” He chuckled a bit and ran his hand through his hair. “I knew it was you.”

“What are you talking about? Harry, it might just be a coincidence.” I said as I shook my head and stepped away from him. 

“No, it's not. You're Rosalie Devereux. Princess of France. We wrote to each other all the time. I still have your letters. You can read them if you want. Maybe they will jog your memory.” He said as he once again pulled me to his bedroom and set a box of letters in my lap. “This one was the last one you wrote to me.”

He handed me the letter and I looked at the handwriting, finding it slightly familiar but there was just too much missing in my memory. I read it over and bit my lip gently.

My Dear Friend,

I have finally convinced mother and father to allow me to come visit you for Christmas and through to your birthday. I hope that we can continue our conversation that we had last time I visited. I can’t help but think that it’s the right thing to do. I mean, who wouldn’t want to marry their best friend right? It’s far better than marrying any of the suitors my parents have sent to me. I’ll see you soon!

            Love, Rosie.

I stared at the letter in my hands, faintly recognizing the handwriting, but what really caught my attention was the marriage part.

“Marriage?” I asked Harry, seeing that his cheeks flushed a little.

“Um yeah… Well our families have been kinda pushing us to get married the past year or so and we were getting tired of being bothered about it so we were going to propose to our families that we get married. That way we would be with someone we actually like and our families would profit as well if we combined the two countries more. It just seemed like the right thing to do.” He shrugged and ran a hand through his hair.

“No… I would never agree to marry just for convenience… friend or not. I would only marry someone I love. That much I know for sure. There was no way that I would agree to marry you unless-”

“Unless you loved me…” Harry finished, seeming to realize what it meant.

“I can’t… I’m sorry, but I just don’t remember.” I said as my head started to hurt.

“It’s alright. I’ll send for your family and they can come here and help you remember.” He said as he stepped closer and put his hand on my shoulder as my eyes filled with tears.

“And what if it’s not true? What if I get my hopes up that this is my family and it turns out that I’m not their daughter? I can’t do that, Harry. I just can’t.” I sniffled and pulled away from him. “I have to go.”

Before he could say anything else I ran out of the room and rushed back to the bedroom I had been staying in since I came here, feeling my head pounding as I struggled to stay on my feet. The room began to spin and I faintly heard Harry calling my name before everything went black.

Harry’s POV

“Rosie wait!” I called as I rushed after her.

As I got into the bedroom I saw her wobbling on her feet so of course I rushed forwards and caught her just as she fell. Immediately I called for someone to help and when one of the maids rushed in I told her to fetch the doctor, who was thankfully still in the castle because I had gave him a room so he could be on standby when he wasn’t out in the village helping the people there. He was in the room in a few minutes and after explaining what happened he instructed me to place her in the bed and I did just that, lifting her up into my arms before carefully placing her on the bed so she was comfortable.

“If what you say is true and this is the princess, then I’m guessing the memories returning to her caused an overload in her head. Hence the fainting. She should be alright, but make sure she drinks lots of water to stay hydrated and it might be best to stop pushing the memories on her. They will come back in time. Just be patient.” He told me.

I nodded slightly, letting him leave while I stayed by her side and gently brushed some hair back from her beautiful face. I felt awful that this was caused because of me, but now knowing that she was in face Rosalie I felt relieved. However, when she read that last letter she mentioned that she would never marry anyone unless she loved them… So did that mean she loved me? 

The fact that this was all happening before she went missing it made my heart ache. I still had my reply to the letter because before I could send it she was reported missing so she didn’t know that I did in fact have feelings for her. I mean, who wouldn’t fall in love with a kind and beautiful girl like her? Now she didn’t even know who I was and didn’t remember any of the moments we shared or the good memories. It made me so angry to think of whoever did this to her. It was obvious based on her dreams and her faint memory that she had been kidnapped, and thank god she got out when she did. Part of me hoped that she would never remember what happened while she was there, but I knew that was a long shot. She was already starting to remember things so it was only a matter of time before it came back to her.

I let out a deep sigh and looked down at her sleeping face for a moment before leaning in and placing a soft kiss on her forehead.

“Sleep well, my love.”


	4. 4

**TRIGGER WARNING! MENTIONS AND PARTIALLY DESCRIBES SEXUAL ASSAULT**

After Rosie passed out I had gone straight to my parents to let them know that she was in fact Rosalie Devereux, and they immediately sent out a messenger to travel to France to let the King and Queen know that we had found their daughter and she was safe with us. It had been a little over a week since then and I knew it would take even more time for them to arrive so I put my focus on making sure that Rosie was doing alright.

The first couple of days she stayed in her room, but after some convincing I finally got her to come out and enjoy some things with me. We went out horseback riding and although she didn’t originally remember how to ride one it all came back to her once she was in the saddle. Seeing the joy on her face as we raced side by side was the best thing I had seen in awhile. It made my heart swell and I was so glad that she was happy again.

Of course I stopped pushing her to remember, but instead subtly gave hints to past memories which seemed to be helping her. She was remembering the little things about our past together which was good enough for me, especially since she was acting more like her old self now. I was finally getting my Rosie back and I was so happy.

The only problem was that with each good memory that she remembered came a bad one to follow…

Rosie's POV

*Flashback*

“I’ll see you in a few months, mum. I won't be gone too long.” I promised my mother as she held me tightly, not wanting to let her baby go.

“I know but this is the first time you've gone anywhere without us. I know Isaac will take care of you, but it's not easy for a mother to let go of her baby for that long.” She pouted.

“I'll be fine, mum. I should really get going. I'll write to you every day. I love you.” I tell her as I kiss her cheek then give my father a tight hug.

I stepped into the carriage with Isaac and things were going well for the first half of the trip, but the second we stepped off the ship a bunch of men attacked and the next thing I knew I was knocked unconscious.

I awoke bound and blindfolded, having no idea of who my captures were or where I was. All I knew was that I could hear what sounded like a water wheel nearby. After a few minutes of attempting to free myself the door opened and the sound of footsteps growing near causes me to freeze. My heart began to pound as I heard a deep chuckle.

“All that time I spent planning finally paid off… Now you're mine.” A low menacing voice said.

I felt a hand on my cheek and whimpered as I jerked away.

“Don't try to fight me because it'll just be even worse for you.”

His hands moved over my body and I screamed and fought him, struggling to get away as I cried out for help. There was no way in hell that I was letting this man have his way with me, though I quickly realized that he was much stronger than I. With a harsh smack to my face my head jerked to the side and I was dazed long enough for him to push me to the floor on my stomach. As his hands tugged at my clothes I regained my strength and screamed even more, calling out for the one who always made me feel safe.

“Harry!”

*End flashback*

Harry’s POV

I woke up to the sound of Rose screaming my name and I immediately jumped up from my spot sitting on the chair by the window and rushed to her side, shaking her and calling her name to get her to wake up. When she finally did she fought me as if I was hurting her until she finally realized who I was and just broke down sobbing. I hugged her tightly and pulled her onto my lap, allowing her to cry as I did my best to calm her. She had been having nightmares more often and they seemed to be getting worse which worried me.

“You're okay… you're safe, love.” I said softly as I kissed her head and kept a tight grip on her trembling body to match her equally tight grip on me.

“T They attacked us. They killed the others and took me somewhere. I I don't know where. I couldn't see through the blindfold… a and there was this man and he-” 

Her words were cut off by sobs and it didn’t take much for me to figure out what she was about to say. I clenched my jaw and silently vowed to personally drive my sword through the man who did this to her. She used to be so happy and full of life, but now she was haunted and broken. It killed me to see her like this. Especially knowing that she called out for me while this was happening.

“I'm so sorry… I should have been there to meet you as you came off the ship. I should have protected you.” I said as my own voice cracked from emotions. “I promise you I will never let anything happen to you ever again.”

I ended up staying up with her for a couple hours until she finally fell asleep. Her grip remained tight on my body as she slept, hopefully peacefully. My mind raced for a few more hours and it was nearly daybreak when I finally got to sleep myself. I slept in way later than I was supposed to and upon waking I realized that Charlie was awake, gently drawing shapes into my exposed chest. It was a few minutes before she noticed that I was awake and the blush on her cheeks made me smile softly.

“Hi.” I murmured.

“Hi.” She said shyly as she looked down at my chest again to avoid my gaze.

Seeing her like this reminded me of the last time we were together. It was her twentieth birthday and I asked her to dance, which already made her a little nervous. As we moved around the ballroom floor I complimented her on how beautiful she looked which turned her cheeks bright pink. She got so flustered which I found absolutely adorable. It was later that night when we snuck away that I brought up the whole marriage thing.

“Did you sleep well?” I asked as I reached up to brush some hair out of her face.

“Mhm.” She said softly as she looked up at me. “Did you?”

“I did. Are you hungry? I can ask the chef to make us something. You can have anything you want.” I said softly, continuing to play with her hair absentmindedly.

“I don't know, Harry… I'm not really that hungry.” She said.

“You should at least eat some bread, love. You're still recovering.” I reminded her.

Her lips formed into a pout and I chuckled softly, fighting the urge to kiss her lips and instead settled for a peck on her nose.

“Come on. I'll carry you.” I told her, obviously catching her interest.

After we got dressed she hopped up on my back and snuggled in as I carried her down to the kitchen to let the chef know that we wanted some food. She agreed to have something sent out to us so I carried her into the dining room so we could eat there. I set her down but instead of letting her sit in her own chair I sat down then pulled her onto my lap. I chuckled softly at the squeak of surprise she made, smiling softly as she finally relaxed against my chest.

“What are you doing?” She asked.

“Holding you.” I smiled and kissed her cheek which made her cheeks turn red again.

Rosie's POV

What is with him today? He was being so cuddly and affectionate, not that I minded one bit, but it was a big change to happen over night. Maybe after telling him about my dream he felt like I needed the extra comfort and although I would never admit it I really did. After realizing what happened to me in those months that I was missing it makes me wonder what else happened. Although for the moment I was glad I didn’t remember everything.

As we waited for the food to arrive I took the chance to look at the rings on his fingers, smiling softly as I recognized the rose ring I had made for him for his birthday. The same ring I had been carrying in my luggage the day I was taken.

“I'm glad this got to you… I was worried that you never got it.” I said softly.

“The guard found it in a box addressed to me so they brought it here. I've treasured it ever since…” He said softly as he let his chin rest on my shoulder.

I gently trace it with my finger then look back at him for a moment, our faces inches apart. The distance grew shorter as we leaned in but just as our lips touched the cook arrived so we jumped apart and I quickly moved to my own seat, my cheeks burning with embarrassment. The older woman simply smiled and gave us our food then left us alone again. We glanced at each other and smiled then quickly looked away again before beginning to eat our food.

Being around Harry made me feel like one of the characters in the books I read. It was almost like a fairy tale being with him. He made me feel safe and could make me happy no matter what kind of mood I was in. He was so sweet and I knew that I had deep feelings for him. The more time I spent with him the more I understood my decision to marry him. 

“Excuse me. Pardon the interruption, but you are both needed in the King’s study. A member of the French royal guard has arrived to take the Princess home.” A servant said as he stepped over to us.

I immediately tensed up when he said the man was here to take me back home and I looked at Harry with a nervous look on my face. I wasn’t ready to leave him. He was the only one I remembered and going with strangers terrified me.

“Hey, it'll be alright. I'll talk with my father.” Harry assured me as he placed his hand over mine.

I nodded slightly and followed him to his father’s study, gripping onto his hand and arm as we walked. I was afraid the king would make me leave anyway, but what I wasn’t prepared for was to hear a familiar voice as we approached the door that made my blood run cold and my body freeze with fear. 

“I'd like to thank you for taking care of her. It was a terrible thing that happened to the princess. We have been searching for her this whole time. Her parents have been worried sick.”

I suddenly felt sick to my stomach and my body started to tremble as I stared at the half opened door, feeling absolutely terrified.

“Rosie? What's wrong?” Harry asked as he stepped in front of me and held my arms, frowning as he noticed the tears falling down my cheeks.

“I-It’s him. Harry, don't let him take me. Please.” I begged as I gripped onto his shirt. “Please, don't let him take me.” 

“There you are. Come in, son.” The King said as he stood at the door and opened it further so I could finally lay eyes on the man who haunted me in my nightmares.

Harry’s POV

Rosie’s face paled and her eyes remained wide with fear as she looked at the man behind my father. I finally turned to look as well and protectively held her behind me, trying to keep as much of her out of his view as possible. I immediately recognized the man as the captain of the french royal guard who often came along with her family when they visited the castle. No wonder it was so easy for her to be taken. It was done by someone they trusted with their lives.

“I'm not going anywhere near that man and neither is Rosalie. He's the one who kidnapped her, Father!” I said as I felt Rosie grip onto my shirt and press herself into my back.

“That’s nonsense, Harry. Isaac has been part of their guard for years and I know him well. There is no way he would do such a thing.” The King frowned.

“It may be possible that her injury to her head that you mentioned has mixed up her memories.” Isaac said as he stepped closer.

I immediately stepped back as I felt Rosie tense up and pull me back with her to keep the distance. My hand shifted to my side where I kept my knife hidden just in case, standing my ground as the man lifted his hands to show surrender.

“I mean no harm. I love Rosalie as if she was my own and I would never do anything to hurt her.” He said.

“Bullshit. Father, you can't possibly believe this. Look at her. She’s terrified of him!” I said to my father.

“Rosalie… How do you know this is the man who took you?” He asked.

“I-I… I couldn't see b-because I was blindfolded… but I know that voice.” She said quietly.

My father sided and rubbed his face.

“Many voices are similar. It's possible you could have just heard someone with a similar voice. Now I can't just keep you here when your parents are asking for you to be returned home.”

“No! You're not taking her!” I yelled.

“Harold that is enough!” My father bellowed. “You will do as you’re told! She is leaving tomorrow and that's final.”

The two men went back into the study and as soon as the door shut Rosie burst into hysterics. She was sobbing and barely able to stand on her feet as she kept begging me not to let them take her. I immediately pulled her into my arms and hugged her tightly.

“I won't. I'll figure something out, love. I promise.”


	5. 5

Harry’s POV

“Are you crazy?” Liam hissed as we stood in my room while I packed the supplies I had gathered.

Shortly after the incident with my father I took Rosie back to my room and had a servant send for the boys. Of course I knew it would take some convincing for them to go along with my plan, but this was the only chance we had since my father refused to listen.

“I can't just let him take her, Liam. This is the only way.” I said.

“Are you sure about this? Your father won't be happy.” Niall added.

“I don't care what he thinks. He's wrong. That man kidnapped Rosalie and he's trying to get her back to do god knows what to her. He's already done unspeakable things and I'm not letting him take her again. And you all know it takes two weeks to reach Paris from here. I just sent the messenger a week ago. There is no way that he would have gotten there yet to tell the King and Queen that their daughter is alive so how did he know she was here? The only explanation is that he followed her or he intercepted the message himself.”

They were silent for a while, all of them knowing I was right. The pieces were falling into place now and it was our job to protect her… but we couldn't do that here.

“Okay. I'm in.” Louis said.

The other boys fell into place and we finished getting ready to leave. I looked over at Rosie who had just been sitting on a chair in the corner of the room watching, still pale and sick looking. I could tell she was scared and I wanted to take her pain away so badly.

“Rose… I promise you I'll get you away from him. We’re leaving tonight and I'm going to get you as far away from here as we can.” I promised her as I knelt in front of her and gently wiped a tear from her cheek.

She sniffled and nodded, leaning forwards to wrap her arms around my neck.

“Thank you.” She whispered.

I held her for a long while and kissed her head gently. I was going to protect her… even if it cost me my life.

~.:o:.~

“Where is Rosalie?” My mother asked as we all sat around the dinner table.

“She wasn’t feeling well. She's resting.” I said.

My eyes never left the man in front of me who was putting up the act of innocence that my parents were believing. It took everything in me not to lunge at him over the table and rip his throat out.

“Oh that's too bad. Poor thing has been through a lot recently.” She said.

“It's going to be a long road to recovery that's for sure. I can only imagine what she went through.” Isaac said.

“I'm sure you can see it pretty vividly can't you.” I growled, gripping onto the armrest of my chair.

“Harry.” My father warned.

“I have things to do. Excuse me.”

I stood up and stormed off before anyone could say anything else, heading up to my room to find the boys guarding the room like I asked them to so she would feel safer. As I stepped inside I found her curled up on the bed struggling to rest before the long night ahead of us. Since I needed the rest as well I laid down behind her, pressing my body against her back as I wrapped my arms around her.

“Sleep, love. It'll be a long night.” I murmured.

She sighed softly but nodded and grabbed hold of my hand, pulling it up to rest under her chin as she finally closed her eyes and allowed herself to sleep. I slept the best I could, but of course neither of us slept very well. When Louis came to wake us up we were exhausted, but we needed to get going otherwise we would never get out of here. Most of the people in the castle were asleep apart from some guards, but we knew how to get around them so it was easy for us to sneak out of the castle and get to our horses. Soon enough we were on our way out of the castle grounds and doing our best to put as much distance between us and the castle as possible.

Rosie sat behind me on my horse, holding onto me for warmth and I was definitely glad she decided to ride with me because it was much warmer than I would have been on my own. Plus I got to be close to her so it was a win win situation for me.

It was almost midday when we finally decided to stop at a village to rest the horses and get some food and rest ourselves. Liam got us a room at an inn then once we placed the horses in the stable we went inside. Of course Rosie and I kept our hoods up to avoid being noticed and thanks to the boys we had borrowed some commoner clothes so we were less noticeable. I opened the door to our room and stepped inside with Rosie, finally taking off the heavy cloak.

“You can have a bath first. I'll talk with the boys about getting us some food.” I told her.

She nodded and stepped into the bathroom to bathe in the hot water. I let out a deep sigh then stepped into the next room so I could speak with the boys. After a quick chat about the next move the food we ordered was delivered so I brought two plates over to our room. Rosie was still in the bath so I set the plates on the table and sat down on the bed to wait for her, feeling exhausted after the long night we had.

Rosie’s POV

The hot water soothed my sore muscles and it didn’t take long for the warmth to lull me to sleep. However, it didn’t take long for the nightmares to set in and the next thing I knew Harry was at my side, holding onto my wet body tightly as I finally stopped struggling.

“Shh. You're okay.” He said softly as he rubbed my back.

His shirt was getting wet but he didn’t seem to care as he just held me close until I calmed down. I sniffled slightly and stayed in his arms for a moment longer until I felt calm enough to pull back. He kept his gaze respectfully locked on my face as he wiped the tears from my cheeks.

“Are you ready to get out now?” He asked.

I nodded and watched him grab the towel before turning back to me as he held it open. He turned his head away so he didn’t see anything and I smiled softly, glad that he was so respectful towards me. I stepped out of the tub and wrapped the towel around my body then placed my hand on his cheek that faced away from me, then leaned in and placed a soft lingering kiss on the one closest to me.

“Thank you.” I said softly.

His cheeks turned pink and he smiled shyly, giving me a nod.

“I'll um. I'll be outside so you can get dressed. I brought food.” He said as he awkwardly stepped out of the room.

I laughed softly to myself and smiled then pulled on clean clothes to wear. Since we were basically on the run I was given male servant clothes because pants were easier to run in than long dresses. I pulled on my undergarments before the pants and shirt, finally stepping out to sit down with Harry so we could eat. After skipping dinner last night I was starving so I ate all of my food then laid down on the bed as Harry went in to the bathroom to bathe.

Of course I stayed awake waiting for him since being close to him seemed to help keep the nightmares at bay. It wasn’t long until I felt the bed dip behind me and I inhaled his familiar scent, smiling softly as he wrapped his arms around me and kept me close.

“You should try to get back to sleep. We have to head out again in a few hours.” He said softly.

“You first.” I said, smiling softly as I felt his chuckle vibrate through his chest.

“If I fall asleep first then you'll never sleep.” He said.

He was right, but I was still a bit afraid of my nightmares. After seeing Isaac and putting a face to the monster he was all I saw when I closed my eyes. Thankfully he had only touched me like that a couple times from what I remember, but the last couple weeks I remembered fighting more and that lead to more beatings. It was exactly why I was so beat up and thin when Harry found me. He got so annoyed and decided not to bother with me anymore. I was thankful though because I would take a beating over the other any day.

“Harry?” I asked softly after a long moment.

“Hmm?” Came his sleepy response.

“Thank you… for saving me.. and doing this. I know how hard it was to leave your family.” I said softly as I turned to look back at him.

He was awake now looking at me and he brought his hand up to brush his thumb over my cheek.

“I would do anything for you…” He murmured.

My heart skipped a beat at his sweet words and I found myself staring down at his pink lips. The next thing I knew my lips were pressed to his in a soft kiss and he eagerly returned it. Our lips moved slowly in perfect sync and I could feel butterflies fluttering around in my stomach. Despite the hardships we had to go through to get to this point it still felt perfect and I knew right then that I was in love with him before I was taken… And even though I forgot most of what gave me that feeling in the past… being with him now made me fall for him all over again.

When our lips finally broke apart we just took a second to enjoy the moment before I finally opened my eyes and saw him smiling back at me. My cheeks turned pink and I smiled shyly, quickly turning back around to face away from him. His chuckle vibrated against my back and I felt him place a soft kiss on my shoulder.

“No need to hide from me, love… It’s adorable, don’t get me wrong, but you don’t have to feel embarrassed.” He said softly as he held me close to his chest.

“I know. It’s just… That was my first kiss.” I admitted as I played with his fingers.

“Second actually… You don’t remember it, but we actually already had our first kiss. It was the night of your eighteenth birthday, when I last saw you and also when we decided that we would marry each other instead of the ones our parents wanted us to. We ran away from the party and you just looked so beautiful that night. I just couldn’t resist myself so I kissed you and I told you that I loved you. I still do, Rosie… I’ve never stopped loving you.”

His words made my heart skip a beat and I felt my eyes water a bit. It’s no wonder I agreed to marry him. I was so hopelessly in love with him even now when I barely remembered him. I couldn’t imagine how I felt before I lost my memories.

“I know I don’t remember much… but even so I’ve fallen for you.. I know I loved you back then and now I’m starting to understand why.” I said softly.

We didn’t need to exchange any more words to know how we felt about each other, and we let that moment of peace and happiness lull us to sleep as we finally got some much needed rest. 

~.:o:.~

I woke up to the sounds of distant screaming and as I turned to wake up Harry I found him to be missing which sent me into a panic. I quickly got out of bed and called out to him, only to get no response so I had no choice but to figure out what was going on myself. After pulling on my boots and cloak I grabbed the knife Harry gave me just in case and snuck out into the hallway of the inn. As I rounded the corner I was suddenly met by two of the maids and the owner’s wife as they rushed to me in a panic, pulling me into a room before blocking the door.

“What’s going on?” I asked one of the young girls.

“Bandits. They're burning the village and they just got here. T They were killing people.” She choked out and held onto the other girl who was equally afraid.

“Girls be quiet.” The older woman hissed as she stood by the door listening.

We all went silent, hearing heavy footsteps coming down the hall until there was a pause and a sudden pounding on the door. The three of them jumped back and I gripped onto my knife that I kept hidden under my cloak, feeling my heart pounding in my chest as there were a few more loud bangs against the door until it finally burst open and a man stepped in, smirking at the three girls.

“Well well well. What do we have here?” he asked with a sickening grin as he stepped closer.

“Leave them alone.” I said lowly, trying to keep my voice deeper so he didn't suspect me to be a woman as well.

The back of his hand slammed into my cheek with enough force to send me falling to the ground and I laid there in a daze for a moment, faintly hearing the youngest girl scream as he grabbed onto her.

“Come on, baby. You either take off your clothes or you can die.” He said with a laugh.

I looked over to see him touching her like Isaac had done to me and all I saw was red. The next thing I knew I was on my feet, running forwards and yelling as I stabbed my knife into his spine right between his shoulders. He gasped and let go of the girl so she could run back to the older woman who I now realized was her mother. The man turned to me and growled.

“You…bitch…”

He took a step towards me but dropped to his knees and finally fell over completely lifeless. I stared down at the man, suddenly realizing that I had just taken someone’s life and I felt sick to my stomach.

“It’s you… the missing princess…” The oldest girl said as they all looked at me, seeing my face after my attack had knocked my hood off.

“Rose!”

I turned to see Harry rush in, sighing in relief when he saw me. He grabbed my knife from the man’s back and placed it back in my hand.

“Rose. We have to go.” He said, making sure I heard him as I nodded and allowed him to pull me out of the building and towards the treeline where the boys were waiting with the horses. The five of us quickly mounted then took off into the woods and I couldn’t help but look back at the village, seeing an orange glow from the burning buildings. Tears formed in my eyes as I thought about all of the lives that were lost and it was all my fault…


	6. 6

Harry’s POV

We didn’t stop running until our horses were almost too exhausted to continue. We came upon a farm and thankfully the owners were kind enough to let us sleep in their barn for the night because they didn’t have room in their home. We made beds up in the hayloft and I could tell Rose was still having trouble with what she saw back at the village and what she did, because she sat away from the rest of us and peered out the small window. I sighed softly and walked over to her, sitting down across from her so our legs were touching. In the dim lighting I could see tears in her eyes and it broke my heart.

“All of those people… their homes destroyed… lives lost… it's all my fault.” She whispered, voice cracking with sadness.

“Hey, it's not your fault. Isaac is a psychopath who doesn't care about anyone but himself. He's the one who murdered all of those people. If anything think about how you saved those girls.” I said as I put my hand in her knees and scooted closer to her.

“But I killed that man, Harry! I felt the knife go into his flesh and he’s dead. I-I can't…”

It broke my heart as she choked out a sob and I immediately pulled her into my arms, leaning back against the wall as I allowed her to cry into my arms for what felt like the hundredth time. This poor girl has been through so much already and I knew it would only get worse from here on out. It was obvious that Isaac would burn through every village in his way so our best bet was to keep moving until we made it to Paris so we could explain to her parents what was going on.

Rosie’s POV

We had been traveling for a couple days already and by the time we made it to the channel I was exhausted. We still had a long road ahead of us, but at least we were one step closer to being safe. Once in French territory we could find soldiers to bring us home, though I knew it would be hard to trust anyone now. Especially since Isaac was once such a trusted man in my family.

The boys secured us safe passage on a cargo ship so once everything was packed up we set sail and began the day long journey across the channel. I mostly stayed in the cabin I was sharing with Harry but as night time arrived and most of the men were sleeping I wandered up onto the deck to find Harry awake as he leaned over the edge of the ship. The moonlight was the only thing lighting us apart from a couple lanterns scattered along the ship, but the moon gave enough light so I could see fairly well once my eyes adjusted.

“Couldn't sleep either?” I asked softly as I walked up to him.

He turned to look back at me and I saw a soft smile form on his lips.

“No, not really. I assume you didn't get much rest while you were in the cabin?” He questioned.

“No. I'm too nervous. I don't remember my family or anything about Paris so how am I supposed to live there if they make me stay?” I sighed softly and stood next to him as I grabbed onto his arm. “I want to stay with you.”

He shifted to face me and brought his hand up to cup my cheek.

“I won't leave you with them if you don't want to stay there… but for now it's the best chance we have at keeping you safe. I hope your parents will not be like mine and that they will believe Isaac is the man behind your disappearance. If they don't believe us then you and I will run away together. We will find some place safe… start a life together. I'm not leaving you ever again.” He promised.

I smiled softly up at him, feeling my heart flutter at his words. I was so hopelessly in love with this man and I knew now more than ever that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him by my side. My hands move to his chest as I hold onto his shirt, pulling myself up slightly so I could place a kiss on his soft lips. His arms wrapped around my waist to keep weight off my tip toes as we both got lost in the kiss. His tongue swiped over my bottom lip to ask for entrance which I happily granted and welcomed the feeling of his tongue dancing with mine.

We were both breathless when we finally parted and as we looked into each other’s eyes I knew right then what I wanted and that he wanted it as well. I pulled back and grabbed hold of his hand, leading him down to our cabin in the belly of the ship. We snuck past the sleeping crew and locked ourselves in the room, both of us staring at each other in silence for a moment as we realized what was happening.

I started first, proving to him that I was ready for this as I took off my boots then removed my pants before slowly unbuttoning the shirt I was wearing. His eyes scanned over my body as the fabric fell to the floor, revealing my half naked body. He had seen me fully naked before but he didn’t give himself the chance to properly look out of respect, but now that I was giving him permission I could tell he was savoring it.

He began to peel off his clothes just as I did and I allowed my eyes to scan over his bare torso, muscles flexing as he removed every bit of clothing apart from his underwear. He made the first move as he stepped closer to me, hands cautiously reaching out to touch my exposed skin. I closed my eyes as I focused on his soft touch, finding a clear difference between him and Isaac so it wasn’t hard for me to forget about what he did to me. Isaac’s hands were rough and painful, whereas Harry’s were slow and gentle.

I felt his hands slowly slide up my waist to grasp my breasts, causing a soft gasp to fall from my lips as he massaged them gently. I had never been touched with such love and care before so I felt like my skin was on fire with every touch. His lips attached to my neck, leaving soft kisses on my skin as he slid his hands back down to grab onto my thighs. As he lifted my body up I wrapped my legs around his waist, allowing him to move me to the bed as I finally opened my eyes to look at him. His eyes showed nothing but love as they stared back at me and I couldn't help but smile softly at him. 

“I love you, Harry.” I whispered.

“I love you, too.” He smiled.

Harry’s POV

I did my best to take it slow and pleasure her the best I could. I had never been with a woman before so all of this was new to me but the boys had given me a few pointers in the past so I kind of knew what I was doing. I was mostly worried about scaring her, though it seemed as if she was doing okay so far. The noises she made drove me absolutely crazy and I could feel my under shorts getting tighter with each passing minute.

I continued leaving soft kisses all over her skin, watching her as I moved my mouth to her breast and gently biting her nipple. She gasped and her eyes shot open to look at me which made me chuckle.

“Don't laugh.” She pouted as she hit my shoulder.

“Sorry, love.” I smirked, flicking my tongue over it a couple times which finally earned a moan from her lips.

Holy shit…

Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment which I only found adorable.

“Don't be embarrassed, my love. That sound was incredibly sexy.” I assured her as I moved up to kiss her lips softly.

After touching her a little more to prepare her I finally pulled the last remaining clothes off our body and looked down at her, wanting to be absolutely sure that she was okay with this.

“If you want me to stop just tell me, okay?” I said softly.

She nodded and I leaned down to kiss her lips to distract her as I slowly inched myself in. A gasp left her lips and her grip on my body tightened so I paused my movements to look down at her.

“I'm okay.” She assured me.

I nodded and took a deep breath as I continued until I went as far as I could go, giving her a moment to adjust before she finally gave me the okay and relaxed her body. I kissed her softly and lowered myself so I rested on my elbows with my arms under her shoulders to keep our bodies close. Her hands rested on my shoulders and kept me in place as I slowly moved my hips into hers. Her soft moans kept me assured that she was enjoying it just as much as I was and I couldn't help but let out a few moans myself as well. My lips moved from her lips, down to her neck and chest, then back up again as I felt ourselves growing closer until we felt nothing but pure bliss. The look on her face was something I would never forget and she looked so beautiful.

We stayed connected for a moment and I gently brushed some hair from her face, smiling softly as I looked into her bright blue eyes.

“Marry me.” I whispered, seeing her eyes widen slightly.

“What?” She asked.

“Marry me. Once all of this is over I want to spend the rest of my life with you… not just because we’re friends and it would help our countries, but because I love you with every inch of my being and I want to be with you and start a family. I want to wake up to your beautiful face every morning and think about how lucky I am to have you. Marry me, Rose.”

Her eyes glistened with tears and I was almost afraid that I said the wrong thing but when she suddenly pulled me into a deep kiss I knew that wasn’t the case. I smiled into her lips as I heard her murmur a “yes” into mine, continuing to kiss her as we went a couple more rounds tangled up in the sheets.

Rosie’s POV

I woke the next morning to find Harry gone but he left a note on the nightstand to tell me he just went to get us some food and check on how much longer we had until we arrived. I smiled softly as I remembered what happened last night and how incredible it was. Harry really proposed to me and of course I said yes.

I laid in bed for a few more minutes until I finally got up and got myself dressed, putting my hair up into a bun so it would be out of my face. Just as I was finishing up the door opened and Harry stepped in with some food for us both.

“Morning.” I smiled softly as I walked over to give him a kiss.

“Morning, beautiful. How are you feeling?” He asked.

“I feel good. A little tired, but that's understandable.” I blushed.

He chuckled softly and kissed my cheek.

“I have something for you… I've been holding onto this for months since we first spoke about getting engaged, but since I asked you last night it's only fair I give you a ring.” He said as he pulled the most beautiful ring out of his pocket. It had a gold band with a beautiful ruby stone in the middle and a couple other smaller stones around it.

“It's beautiful.” I whispered, smiling softly as he grabbed my hand and slid it onto my left ring finger before placing a soft kiss on my knuckles.

“It suits you.” He smiled softly.

I kissed his lips then sat down to enjoy our meal together before we finally went up on deck to see the boys who all had to give me a big hug of congratulations. I laughed and hugged each of them in return, glad to have met them because they had become such good friends and I trusted each of them with my life.

“Captain Jones said that we should be coming up on land in an hour or so.” Niall told Harry who nodded.

“Perfect.” He nodded.

“Harry? Can you teach me how to fight?” I asked him. “I want to know to protect myself.”

“I suppose I could teach you a few things. I'm not sure you'll be able to use a sword though. They're pretty heavy.” He teased as he pulled his own from it's sheath and handed it to me.

I grabbed hold of the handle and the second he let go the tip fell to the ground and I let out a squeak of surprise at how heavy it was. It was a struggle to lift it.

“Okay. Yeah. Definitely not a sword.” I said, pouting as they all laughed at me.

Harry chuckled and took the sword from me and put it back in its place before he unhooked his weapon belt and handed it to Louis so he could hold onto it.

“Alright. Come here and I'll show you some basics.” He said as he pulled me over to a more open area so he could teach me some things.

I stayed focus as he showed me how to get out of multiple holds, though having him so close after what happened last night distracted me a couple times and led to me falling on my ass.

“Focus, love. I know it's hard.” Harry teased as he reached down to help me up.

I grabbed onto his hand and suddenly yanked him to the ground, quickly getting on top of him and pinning his wrists down.

“Focus, Harry.” I mocked with a grin, feeling his hips shift slightly under mine as the position obviously brought back the blissful memories.

I smirked then stood up and helped him to his feet so we could continue our practicing. But before we could do anything a loud boom in the distance followed by a sudden crash to the ship made us unsteady on our feet. We both looked behind us and saw another ship coming up quickly and when I saw the French flag being waved it sent fear down my spine.

“Isaac…”


	7. 7

"Rosie, we have to go. Get in the boat!" Harry yelled over the chaos of cannon fire and the shouts from the crew.

"These people are going to die, Harry! We can't just leave them! They don't even know how to fight!" I cried.

"We have to leave them or you won't be able to stop Isaac. I know it's hard but we have to go." Harry said, sympathizing with my fears because he too felt the same.

My eyes filled with tears as I looked back at the crew who were crambling around trying to keep the ship afloat even though there were already multiple holes in it. The Captain walked over and nodded.

"Go, Princess. It will have been an honor to serve England and France in protecting the crown. We will fend them off as much as we can." He said.

"But Captain-" I started but he shook his head.

"No need for formalities... Call me Killian." He said as he shook my hand. "I'll see you again when you are safe in Paris."

I nodded slightly and couldn't help but give him a tight hug for his kindness before reluctantly getting in the life boat with Harry and the boys. They started rowing as fast and they could, trying to get us through the last stretch until we got to the French shoreline. I kept my eyes on the ship as I watched the crew jump into the cold waters, trying to swim to shore for their safety as the ship was blown to pieces. It didn't take long for Isaac to realize we weren't on board and when his ship came our way I felt panic rising up in my chest. They were much faster so even as we made it to shore we were cutting it close and we would also be running on foot the rest of the way due to the fact that the horses were left back in England.

The second we hit land the boys pulled the boat onto the short then we all got out and started running. As I ran I started having flashbacks of when I escaped him the first time. I was running through the dark woods, hearing shouts from the men behind me. My lungs burned and my feet hurt like hell but I kept going until I fell down a steep hill and ended up rolling, cutting my skin on twigs and fallen branches until I slammed into a boulder which is what made me lose my memory. It felt exactly the same as I ran with Harry and the boys, but even more terrifying because I knew what he was capable of. My foot caught on something because I was distracted and it sent me falling to the ground with a hard thud.

"Rose!" Harry called as he immediately turned around and came back to help me up.

I whimpered as pain shot up from my ankle and I was struggling to breathe because I was so afraid. I could hear the shouts in the distance as the men grew closer and I felt like it was happening all over again.

"Rosalie, look at me." Harry demanded as he grabbed my cheeks. "We will be fine. I won't let them take you. I promise... but you have to run for me, love."

I took a few deep breaths to calm down and nodded, letting him wrap his arm around me so I had support as we rushed off after the boys who were waiting for us to catch up. By the time we made it to the next village if felt like Isaac's men were so close that they were breathing down our necks. We had no choice but to hide until the boys could figure out a way to get us some horses or a carriage that we could use for the final stretch to Paris.

Harry carefully pulled off my boot and I bit my lip harshly to quiet myself due to the pain. By the looks of my swollen and bruised ankle it was obviously sprained which meant I couldn't run very fast.

"Harry... I'm scared." I whispered, looking at him as he paused from wrapping my ankle and sighed softly.

"I am, too, but we will figure it out okay?" He assured me, cupping my cheek to wipe away a stray tear that fell down my cheek.

He leaned in and kissed me hard as if this was going to be our last kiss and that terrified me. It felt like he was planning on doing something stupid that he might not come back from.

"Haz-" I started, but before I could finish Liam burst in the door to the empty cottage we were hiding in to warn us that they were close.

Harry nodded and pulled them off to the side, telling everyone his plan and they nodded in agreement before turning to me.

"Rose... you have to go with Liam okay?" Harry said as he walked over and cupped my cheeks.

"What? No. I want to go with you." I frowned, feeling the panic rise up in my chest.

"You have to. They could only find one horse and someone needs to stay and distract Isaac so you can get to Paris." He said.

"But he'll kill you! No, Harry! You can't!" I cried, tears falling down my cheeks as I got up and gripped onto him in an attempt to keep him with me.

"I love you so much. I promise we will see each other again." He kissed me again with the same passion he did before and as he pulled away I saw his own eyes glisten with tears.

He didn't expect to keep that promise...

As he turned to rush out with Louis and Niall I tried to run after him but my ankle didn't let me get very far and Liam was quick to catch me. I struggled in his grasp and cried out for Harry, but they were already gone.

"Rosie, we have to go. Harry will be fine now that he doesn't have you to worry about." Liam tried to assure me, but I could tell by the tone of his voice that he was unsure as well.

I sniffled and reluctantly went with him, getting on the horse behind him as we took off towards Paris. I kept a tight grip on Liam and buried my face into his cloak to hide my tears. There was a good chance that I would never see Harry again and it absolutely broke me.

We were both exhausted by the time we arrived at the castle gates. Of course we were stopped by the guards but once I took my hood off and they saw who I saw they immediately let us inside and we made our way up the path to the main doors of the castle courtyard. They must have alerted my parents because by the time we were led inside they came rushing down the stairs.

"Rosalie!" My mother cried as she rushed over and pulled me into a tight hug. "Oh my baby. I was so worried."

I allowed them both to hug me, but I just couldn't remember much about them. They looked familiar but that was it.

"What happened to you?" My mother asked.

"Your Majesties. I am Liam Payne, a personal guard to Prince Harry of England. She came to us afraid and badly injured and I'm afraid she's still suffering from some memory loss. The only one she seems to remember is the Prince." He explained.

"So you don't remember us?" My father asked me.

"I don't... I'm sorry." I said quietly. "But you have to help Harry. Please. He stayed behind to keep Isaac from getting to me." 

"Isaac?" My father asked in confusion.

"Yes. He was the one who kidnapped me. His men attacked us at the port of England and I was held captive for months before I escaped. He... He did unspeakable things to me while I was there and he found me in London. He was going to try to take me, but Harry and his guards wouldn't let him. We were trying to get here so you could help us. His parents didn't believe that it was Isaac because they trust him so much, but please. I'm begging you. Don't let him fool you. He's been planning this for years. He was going to use me as leverage for the throne." 

As I spoke I could see that they were having a hard time believing me which made my eyes water.

"Please. You have to help Harry. They'll kill him." I choked out.

"Oh honey." My mother wrapped me up in her arms and hugged me as I cried and I looked over at my father as I heard him call for one of the guards.

"Gather the army. I want extra guards around the castle and have the general meet me in my study." He ordered.

The man nodded and rushed off to do just that. I felt so relieved as my father placed his hand on my back to comfort me.

"We will find him." He assured me.

I sniffled and nodded, snuggling into my mother a bit more. I may not remember her right now but her embrace still brought me comfort.

"Let's get you some new clothes. You can have a hot bath while the cook makes you some food." My mother said to me.

Even though I wasn't hungry I let her fuss over me anyway as Liam helped me walk to the room that I assumed was mine. When it was time for him to leave me I grabbed onto his hand, still feeling nervous about being left alone with these strangers.

"I'll be just outside the door. I made Harry a promise not to leave your side until he came back." He assured me.

I nodded and gave him a quiet thank you as I let go of his hand so he could step out into the hallway. The maids came in to help me undress and get cleaned off. It was something I definitely was not used to and I felt a bit awkward when they noticed the love bites Harry had left earlier, but they didn't say anything as they continued to wash the dirt from my skin.

"We're happy to have you back, miss." One of them said softly after I was dressed.

"Thank you... and I'm sorry I don't remember your names." I said.

"It's quite alright. We understand. A doctor will be in shortly." She smiled softly and left me alone.

Liam stepped in with clean clothes on and smiled softly.

"How is your ankle?" He asked.

"It hurts like hell." I laughed weakly and look down at my ring. "Do you think he's alright?"

"I've known Harry my whole life and if there is one thing I've learned it's that he's as stubborn as they come and he would do anything for you... That includes coming back to you."

I smiled slightly and wiped a stray tear from my cheek as the doctor arrived to tend to my ankle. Afterwards food was brought up, but I couldn't bring myself to eat much. I was too worried about Harry and wondering where he was or if he was alright.

Come back to me, my love...


	8. 8

It's been days since I arrived back home in Paris and there was still no sign of Harry or even Isaac and his men. I was beginning to lose hope that they would never return and even the sky seemed to mimic my emotions today as rain poured down from the heavens from dark clouds that lingered in the sky. It felt like my world had turned dark and gloomy without him by my side and I couldn't handle it. I couldn't eat or sleep, and nightmares of losing Harry continued to plague me in my sleep.

At the moment Liam was the only one keeping me sane. He stayed by my side just as he promised and he became a very close friend to me, helping me through long nights when I couldn't sleep. I was so thankful to have a friend like him who was the only familar face at the moment. The only one I truly trusted.

The two of us walked through the castle together, his arm around my waist to help keep my weight off my ankle which was still a bit tender.

"Where do you think they are right now?" I asked him.

"I'm not sure. Probably hiding out somewhere waiting for a chance to get here." He said as he walked slowly beside me.

"I hope they're alright. I don't know what I would do if I lost him." I whispered as I sat down in the main sitting room.

"We will deal with that if it comes to that... but I have faith in them." He said as he sat beside me, holding onto my hand for comfort.

I nodded slightly and laid my head on his shoulder, letting out a soft sigh as I closed my eyes. A few minutes later we heard footsteps growing closer, but I didn't bother to open my eyes because I figured it was just a guard passing by.

"I leave you two alone for a few days and you're already this close? Maybe it was a bad idea." That familiar voice that I had been dying to hear again teased.

My eyes shot open and I looked over to see Harry standing in the doorway with a tired smile on his face. He looked dirty and beat up with some bruises and cuts evident on his face and body, but he was alive and that was all I cared about. I jumped to my feet and ran over to hug him tightly, choking out a sob as I clung to him. If he was in any pain he didn't show it because he held onto me just as tight.

"I thought you were dead." I whimpered as I pulled back to look at him, seeing a cut above his left eye and another on his bottom lip.

"I made a promise didn't I?" He smiled.

"I hate you so much for leaving me like that." I mumbled before crashing my lips onto his.

"I love you, too." He murmured against my lips with a smile as he returned the passionate kiss.

Eventually we pulled away and I pressed my forehead to his for a moment as I calmed myself down, feeling so relieved that he was safe in my arms again. We would have stayed there longer if my father hadn't cleared his throat, obviously a bit confused as to what was going on between us. I wiped my eyes then looked at my father as I grabbed onto Harry's hand.

"Your Majesty." Harry said formally as he bowed to him. "I know this may seem strange to you, but Rosalie and I made a plan long before she was taken to be together and I wish to marry her. I already asked her and she said yes, but your blessing would mean the world to us."

I squeezed Harry's hand, feeling nervous about how he would react but he simply smiled.

"How could I deny the man who risked his life to save my daughter the chance to marry her? If that is what she wants then UK have my blessing." He said.

I smiled widely and immediately rushed forwards to hug him tightly, something that came as a shock to him since I had been so distant around them since I got here.

"You'll have to tell your mother of course, but I'll let you do that later. Take the rest of the day to rest. Now if you'll excuse me I have the Isaac matter to attend to." He said as he walked over to the general who found Harry and the others to ask for information.

I turned to Harry with a wide smile, but it faded when I noticed that he was holding onto his side.

"Your hurt."

"I'm alright. I'm starving though so lets go get some food." He said as he put his arm around me then headed towards the dining room.

We sat at the large table together and I made sure my chair was close to his so I could hold his hand, feeling extremely clingy but rightfully so. I stayed quiet as we waited for our food, wanting to ask him what happened but I knew it wasn't the right time.

"So how have things been with your parents? Do you remember anything now that you're back?" He asked.

"Not really. They are familiar, but I don't remember anything specific about them. I feel terrible because I've been distancing myself from them and staying with Liam, but it's just hard to be close to people I don't remember." I said with a soft sigh.

"I'm sure they understand, love. I bet they're mostly just glad that you're okay." He assured me as he gently rubbed his thumb over my knuckles.

"I hope so... My mother has been so upset about it and I feel terrible. By the way did you find out about Killian?" I asked.

"I did. There were only five losses from the crew. The rest made it to shore safely. Killian and a few of them actually met up with us to help fight off Isaac's men so we could get away. I think they should be around here somewhere. The general said he would tell the King about what they did." Harry explained.

I smiled softly and nodded, glad that only a small amount of them were killed and that they were all okay after the fight. I would have to figure out a way to repay them for their kindness and bravery. Our food arrived shortly after so the two of us ate until our stomachs were filled then made our way back to my bedroom to rest. Harry got rid of some of his heavy clothes and I could see that his torso was wrapped to keep a wound covered.

"What happened?" I asked as I gently touched the area, leaning down to kiss it in hopes of taking his pain away.

"Well... Louis wore your cloak so they thought the three of us were on the run. We managed to hide in the trees but eventually we had to fight them. It was just the three of us at first so we got a little beat up until Killian arrived with his men. I got cut by a sword which is why I'm all bandaged up right now." He said.

I nodded slightly and sighed, wishing he never had to go off on his own in the first place like that. At least he wasn't dead though. That was my main concern.

"Hey. I'll be alright. Your father said the doctor was on his way to check things out so everything will be fine, love. The only thing that matters is that you're safe." He said softly as his hand reached up to brush some hair from my face.

"That's not the only thing that matters..." I whispered.

My hand covered his that rested on my face as tears formed in my eyes. Our foreheads pressed together and I sniffled, squeezing my eyes shut for a moment in attempt to stop any tears from falling.

Harry's POV

"I was so scared." She whimpered. "I thought I would never see you again... When you kissed me I knew something was wrong and I could tell you weren't sure you would make it out alive and you have no idea how terrifying that was for me. You can't do that, Harry. You're everything to me and I don't know what I would do if I lost you."

I stayed quiet for a moment as I felt the guilt set in. Seeing her this upset made me realize that I had made a mistake by leaving her like that, but at the time it seemed like the best plan. She was right about me being unsure before we parted ways. I was terrified. I had never been in battle before, but the boys had trained me enough so I knew what to do. The real thing was definitely a lot harder to do when people were actually trying to kill me, but even though I made it out in one piece I was still beaten and hurt. If Killian hadn't arrived when he did I would surely be dead right now. I couldn't imagine what Rose felt during my time away.

"I'm sorry... I won't leave you again. I promise." I said softly as I brushed a tear away from her cheek then leaned in and kissed her softly. I could taste the saltiness from her tears, but I didn't care. I just wanted to show her how sorry I was and how much I loved her. The cut on my lip stung, but it was a pain that was worth it and I kissed her with every bit of passion that I could muster.

"I love you so much, Rosalie Devereux. As soon as all of this is over I'm going to marry you and make you my wife, then we can start a family together."

"You want a family?" She asked.

"Of course I do. Don't you?" I asked as I raised a brow.

"Yeah. I just didn't know you did. What would you want to have?" She asked with a soft smile. "Boy or a girl?"

"I think a little princess would be nice. She would look like you and have those beautiful blue eyes of yours." I smiled as she blushed from my compliment and kissed her nose gently. "What about you?"

"I'll be happy with either as long as it's healthy." She answered with a soft smile.

I nod and smile back at her, feeling nothing but love for this girl and I couldn't help but kiss her softly. Our happy moment was cut short, however when there was a knock at the door and the doctor announced that he was here. Rose sighed softly and gave me one last kiss before she got out of bed, stepping over to open the door and allow the doctor to enter. She stood close by as the doctor examined my wounds, but when he unwrapped the deep cut on my side she immediately paled and looked away.

I sighed softly and hissed in pain as the doctor applied some alcohol to clean it then started stitching me up. Of course it hurt like hell and I tried my best to hold it in, but as soon as I started showing more discomfort Rose ran out of the room. I knew she was upset and tried to go after her, but of course the doctor stopped me and made me stay put while he finished.

"I got her." Liam told me from his post out in the hallway, shutting the door before he went after her.

I could tell their relationship was a lot closer than it was before, but as jealous I felt I understood why. Those two were alone together for almost four days and Liam was the only familiar face so of course Rose would stay by him for comfort. If anything I should be thankful they have a good friendship so I can trust Liam to keep her safe.

I ended up passing out from the pain and by the time I woke up Rose was by my side again, sleeping soundly beside me as she held onto my arm on my good side. I kissed her head gently then allowed myself to go back to sleep, resting up as much as I could because I hadn't slept much the past few days. It was obvious that Rose hadn't slept well either due to the fact that she slept in as long as I did, if not longer.

Unfortunately I had to leave her to her peaceful slumber to have a meeting with the King and fill him in on everything I knew. I made sure to leave her a note so she knew where I was and walked down to his study, telling him everything I knew about how he took Rose and what he did to her for those two months that he had her. Talking about it made me feel sick and I could tell it was hard for him to hear about the horrible things his so called companion did to his beloved daughter.

"When I find that man he'll be gutted alive." He growled.

"I completely agree... That man will pay for what he did."

Rosie's POV

A few weeks passed and we still had no idea where Isaac was and the thought of him being out there somewhere just made me sick to my stomach. He could be lurking in the woods surrounding the castle for all I knew and it made me afraid to go outside. My main concern as of now, however, was Harry.

His wound hasn't been healing as quickly as we had hoped and if anything his condition was getting worse. We had sent for his parents to come over a week ago so they were on their way and should arrive any day now. I remained by Harry's side, only leaving to bathe or to relieve myself because I was beginning to worry that he was never going to get better.

I walked with him down the halls to the library so I could read to him like I did every day, but he was struggling to stay steady on his feet. We made it inside and he laid his head on my lap as usual while I read the book to him, allowing him to rest and just listen. His skin seemed a little more pale than normal apart from his pink tinted cheeks and his breathing was shallow which worried me. As I reached down to brush some hair from his face I immediately felt that it was hot to the touch.

"You've got a fever... Harry stay awake okay? I have to find the doctor." I said as I carefully got up and kissed his head. "I'll be right back. Just hold on." 

I rushed out of the room, calling out for one of the maids to help me find the doctor and get him to the library as I ran through the halls in search of him. I knew that fevers meant infection had set in which was very deadly and I was so scared to lose him. One of the guards told me he was in the village so I didn't think twice about taking one of the horses and riding into the village in search of him. People were shocked to see me but were helpful in pointing me in the right direction. It didn't take me long to find him and I sighed in relief once I did.

"Doctor. Please come quickly. Harry has a fever and he's so sick. Please help him." I begged.

"I'll be right behind you. I'll just have to grab some things from the garden." He nodded and gathered up his supplies.

"Thank you." I told him before leaving the building so I could go back to Harry.

As I rounded the corner to head back to my horse I bumped into a hard chest and fell to the ground, lifting my head up to apologize but as I opened my mouth to speak the words caught in my mouth and fear set in.

"Hello, Princess. I've been looking for you." His menacing voice shook me to my core and sent shivers down my spine.

I immediately scrambled to my feet and tried to run but two of his men captured me. I screamed and fought them, begging the people around me to help but they were just as scared as Isaac as I was. One of them put a hand over my mouth so I bit his hand which only pissed him off so he hit me hard enough to send me falling to the ground. It sent me into a daze and I couldn't barely even process what was happening. The only thing I could think of was Harry and how I hoped the doctor could get to him in time.

"Harry..."


	9. 9

Harry's POV

"What do you mean he has her?! You were supposed to protect her!" I shouted at the boys as they forced me back into bed despite my best efforts to get up so I could go after them.

I felt so weak and helpless in this state. The thought of her being back in the hands of that monster infuriated me. The King apparently already had men searching for her all over the village and since it happened less than an hour ago they couldn't have gotten far.

"I'm sorry, but we didn't even know she was out of the castle until it was too late. She ran off without telling anyone." Louis said.

"Dammit!" I yelled as I ran my hand through my hair.

I felt awful and the doctor had come to try getting my fever down, but one more alcohol wash to my cut and a nasty herbal drink later I still felt like shit. Every time I tried to stand I felt dizzy and nauseous so I was completely and utterly helpless. Even if we did find her I wouldn't be able to go fight to get her back and I hated it.

"We'll find her, Harry... but you know she would kill you if she found out you weren't resting and getting better. There's no point in going after her yourself if you kill yourself in the process." Louis said.

I sighed deeply and nodded slightly, sitting up slightly to drink some water as one of the maids put a cool cloth on my forehead help get my fever down. It definitely helped even though I felt like I was freezing and shivered the whole time. Louis was right though. I needed to get better so when she returned I could be there for her just like she was for me. 

My parents arrived the next morning and of course my mother forced me to take it easy while my father spoke with Rosie's father, Charles, about what was going on. I could tell they felt bad for not believing us before, especially after hearing that I was hurt by Isaac's men on the way here.

We ended up going nearly three days without any sign of her until suddenly Isaac stormed up to the gates with his army demanding to speak to the King. Of course when I heard he was there I went out with them. I felt better, but still not a hundred percent though I didn't let that stop me. Especially when I found out that he had Rosie with him.

I walked side by side with King Charles surrounded by both French and British soldiers. If there was a fight to be fought we were ready for it. Of course a majority of the French guard turned traitor when Isaac made his move so some of them were on the opposite side of the gates, but with the British men my father brought with him we were evened out. 

My heart dropped as they pulled Rosie out from behind the line of guards, practically dragging her because she could barely hold herself up. It was obvious they beat her due to the bruises on her face and dried blood. Seeing her like that made me more angry than I had ever felt in my entire life and if I find out he violated her again he was going to get an even more painful death than we already had planned.

"I've come to make a trade. Your daughter for your crown. Which will it be?" Isaac asked.

"Don't do it!" Rosie suddenly yelled, only to be struck by Isaac.

I lurched forwards ready to kill him, but Louis grabbed onto my arm and held me back.

"Let me go!" I growled.

"We want to kill him as much as you do but if you run in there now you'll get yourself and her killed." He said to me.

I reluctantly gave in and nodded, looking at Rosie as Isaac pulled her back to her feet by her hair. Her whimpers of pain only angered me more and I gripped onto my sword, ready to drive it through his heart.

"I'm waiting." Isaac said in an annoyed tone.

"And if I refuse?" King Charles asked.

"Well then I'll just take her and you'll never see her again. She'll make a great wife for me. Don't you think, Prince Harry?" He smirked as he stood behind her and gripped onto her chin to make her look at me.

Her eyes were filled with tears and she trembled in his grasp, but I could tell that she would sacrifice herself in order to keep this monster from ruling the country. As much as it killed me I knew we had to choose the kingdom and take our chances by tracking them down.

"Alright... just let my daughter go." The King finally said, shocking all of us.

When I looked at him I saw the pain in his eyes. He wasn't a King in that moment. He was a father who blamed himself for everything that has happened to his daughter.

"Father, no. Don't do it." Rosie cried.

"You have my terms. Give me my daughter." The King demanded, having the guards open the gates.

Isaac smirked as he stepped stepped forwards with Rosie.

"You can have her... Just as soon as I'm crowned King of France. I suggest you get to it." He smirked. "In the mean time we would appreciate a room to rest in while we wait."

"You're not being left alone anywhere with her." I growled.

"Fine. But I'm not letting her go until I get what I want and if any of you try to stop me I'll slit her throat." He smirked.

The King reluctantly nodded and allowed Isaac to walk with him while he pulled Rosie with him. As she passed me I reached out to grab her hand for a second, seeing her give me a scared look.

Hang on, Rose. I'll figure out a way to get everyone out of this.

~.:o:.~

"There has to be something we can do. We only have a few hours until the ceremony takes place." Niall said as we all stood together, speaking in hushed tones due to the traitors hanging around us. 

Of course Isaac was smart enough to station them around the castle to make sure no one could make a move without him knowing. It pissed me off that he was such a good strategist. It made things much more difficult.

"Maybe we could attack during the ceremony itself?" Liam suggested.

"No, there will be too many innocent people here in the castle. He would use them as leverage against us." I said as I ran my hand through my hair and sighed.

"Unless we were to disguise our allies as villagers." Louis said, catching our attention. "Think about it. Captain Jones and his men are at the inn nearby so we could have them go around and gather any volunteers to fight. Plus our men from back home. Isaac doesn't really know what they look like and I doubt he took the time to properly look at any of them so they could be disguised as well. Then at the right moment we attack."

"That could work. Go inform Jones right away." I ordered.

Louis nodded and snuck out of the castle while I went to inform my father and Charles of our plan. They both agreed that it was the best course of action, and I took on the duty of getting to Rose and making sure she was safe. She was my main priority.

We spent our last few hours preparing and acting like nothing was wrong apart from the fact that we were pissed about Isaac taking the crown. When the time finally came our men had been placed in the crowd and Isaac had gotten ready, forcing Rose into a gown suited for the ocassion as well. The moment I saw her I knew he had done something to her which only made my anger grow. This bastard was not going to get away with this.

My eyes locked with hers and I gave her a concerned look, but she just nodded to let me know she would be okay. We had yet to tell her about the plan because Isaac had kept her close for leverage so we couldn't get to her. It was obvious that he was not going to keep his promise to let her go so I planned on getting her out of here as quickly as possible.

Tension was high in the room as the ceremony began and I reluctantly sat beside my parents while Isaac was being crowned King of France, but just as the crown was being lifted above his head our men drew their swords and jumped into action. Chaos broke out in the throne room, but my only focus was on Rose who used the defensive move I showed her to break free from the man holding her before making a run for me. I met her halfway and handed her a dagger as I pulled out my sword.

"Go with our mothers and get out of here!" I told her.

"No! I'm not leaving you again! I'm staying!" She argued.

Before I could force her to go a man came after us so I immediately went to battle with him, feeling a bit sore still and a little off in my fighting but it didn't keep me from killing him. When I turned Rose was gone and I quickly scanned the room, seeing her heading after Isaac who was running out to escape.

"Rose!"

I ran after her and got held back a couple times when some of the enemy men came at me so when I finally got to her she was on the floor of the ballroom with Isaac on top of her. I immediately ran over and tackled him off her, not hesitating for a second as my fist pounded into his face. All I could see was red and I was determined to kill this bastard.

Rose's POV

I knew it was stupid to run after him alone but I needed to feel like I had some kind of power back. He made me feel so helpless and this was my chance to turn it around on him. Of course since he was much larger it didn't take him much to overpower me and he smirked as he pinned me down to the ground after hitting me a couple times.

"It's a shame this plan failed... However I still have you and we will have much more fun in the future." He smirked as his free hand ran over my body.

I whimpered and squirmed in attempt to get away from him. 

"N no! Get off me!" I cried, getting flashbacks of earlier when he had forced me to change in front of him and kept touching me which made me sick.

Just as he was about to get up he was suddenly thrown off me and when I looked over I saw Harry on top of him, pounding his fists into Isaac's face. I scrambled over to my dagger and cut part of the skirt of my dress off so I could move easier, looking over to see that Isaac was now on top of Harry. Isaac punched him right where he was injured and caused him to yell in pain.

My shaking hands gripped onto the handle of the dagger and without thinking I rushed forwards to stab him, but he saw it coming and elbowed me in the stomach which knocked the breath from my lungs. I collapsed onto the ground, only to be dragged back up by my hair. Once on my feet he held the knife to my throat to keep Harry away.

"Wait! Don't hurt her... Just let her go then you can leave." Harry said as he slowly stood up, holding onto his side which I'm sure was causing him pain right now.

"So you can come after me again? I don't think so. I'm taking her and there is nothing you can do about it... or maybe I'll just kill her instead?" He smirked, pressing the knife into my neck.

I whimpered as it cut into my skin, causing blood to drip down my neck. My eyes were wide with fear and they matched Harry's as he begged Isaac to let me go. His eyes watered as Isaac moved the knife to my stomach and gave me a cut there as well which made me cry out in pain.

"God dammit! Stop it!" Harry yelled.

Isaac simply laughed and continued to antagonize Harry with sick remarks about everything he did to me while he had me and how I called out for Harry to save me every time. Harry was in tears as was I, having to relive those horrible memories that I tried so hard to forget. I felt like this was it. I was going to die right here and there was nothing either of us could do.

I silently told him I loved him and accepted my fate, closing my eyes as I felt the blade cut into my skin again. I flinched and whimpered in pain, feeling him press it to my neck once more. Just as he was about to give the final cut the door burst open as the boys ran in, distracting him enough for me to get the knife out of his grasp. Without a second thought I ducked down, turn, and thrust it up under his ribs and straight into his heart.

Harry's POV

I watched in shock as Rose maneuvered out of Isaac's grasp and somehow got the dagger from his hand, trusting it up into his heart. His eyes widened and he coughed up blood before finally falling limply to the floor. My gaze turned to Rose who looked absolutely horrified by what she did, just like when she killed that man back at the inn. When she turned to throw up on the floor I snapped out of it and rushed to her side, holding her hair back as she emptied the contents of her stomach before finally leaning into me and letting out a sob.

"Shh. Its okay. You're safe now." I whispered as I held her as close as I could without hurting her.

She clung to me so tightly and my heart ached as she sobbed in my arms. This whole situation was a lot for anyone to handle, but had been through far too much in just a few months. My only hope was that she could get through this and move on with her life. As I held her Killian rushed over to us with a grave look on his face.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but it's the King. He's been injured quite badly." He said.

Rosie immediately rushed off and I followed quickly behind her, seeing her mother kneeling next to his body as he laid on the ground with the doctor trying to tend to his wounds. With the amount of blood he already lost I had my doubts that he would survive and it broke my heart to see Rosie so upset. She still didn't remember much about him but he was still her father and he was about to give up his kingdom to save her.

"Thank god you're safe." He said weakly as he reached up to touch his daughter's cheek.

She grabbed onto his hand and allowed tears to fall freely down her cheeks as he told her how sorry he was for not protecting her better... and how much he loved her. She shook her head and choked out a sob.

"Don't speak to me like you're not going to make it. You're going to be fine." She whimpered. "You'll be okay."

I hung my head, fighting back my own tears because this man was like a second father to me so losing him was just as painful. We stayed with him as he took his last breath and Rosie cried over him long after the room had been cleared of the other bodies. When it was finally time for his body to be prepared for burial she had a hard time letting go so I had to go over and gently pull her away, holding her as we watched the men take her father away.

"Rose... you need to let the doctor take a look at your injuries." I said softly.

She just nodded and I sighed softly, gently wiping her cheeks before placing a lingering kiss on her forehead. After getting her checked out and cleaned up we went to lie down in her bedroom so we could rest. The funeral wouldn't be until the following day because of the big mess in the castle due to the battle so we had some time to recover. I laid next to her with my hand holding hers as we kept our foreheads together.

"Are you okay?" I asked her.

"No... but eventually I will be. After all I have a country to help run now. My mother can't do it on her own."

"Spoken like a true princess and future queen." I smiled a little and kissed her nose. "You have me as well. I'm going to stay here with you. Gemma can have England."

For the first time in days she finally smiled before pressing her lips to mine.

"I love you." She murmured. 

"I love you, too."


	10. 10 - The End

Harry watched as his wife knelt down to speak with the village children who had come to see them, smiling softly at how good she was with them. She was such a natural and it warmed his heart to imagine how she would be with their child who was due to arrive within the month. He noticed that she always kept one hand on her round belly, gently rubbing the child who had a habit of moving around quite a bit in her womb in attempt to calm him. She always teased him that their child was impatient like his father and constantly on the move.

It was true though. Since they became King and Queen of France there had been a lot more work for him to do, but he always made time for her no matter what. After all they were lovers first and to both of them that was the most important thing.

Despite all that happened Rosalie still found happiness in her life. She missed her father terribly, especially lately now that her memories were beginning to return to her, but she knew that wherever he was he was finally at peace. During the first year after his death she worried a lot about her mother, but in the end she found herself a humble duke who won her heart and her hand in marriage. They married shortly after Rosalie discovered she was pregnant so it was a happy time for all of them. A time of new beginnings and peace.

The child in her stomach kicked her particularly hard and she gasped softly, placing her hand over the spot where she had been kicked.

"Are you alright Queen Rosie?" One of the children asked her.

"Yes. The little one is just a little fiesty today. I'm afraid I must go rest now, but I'll see you all soon." She promised the children who pouted, disapppointed that their story time was cut short but they understood.

Rosalie looked back at her husband who was immediately by her side to help her back to her feet, giving her his arm to hold onto in order to keep her steady on their way back to the carriage. He helped her inside and sat beside her, gently kissing her cheek as he placed his arm around her waist.

"You should really be taking it easy from now on, love." He reminded her.

"I will not just sit around on my ass and do nothing for who knows how long until this baby comes." She argued.

Harry sighed and looked at his wife who gave her an equally stubborn expression. She had been having quite a troubling pregnancy. First she was dealing with horrible nausea and dizzy spells, then came the pain from her body shifting to make more room for their child, and now she was once again suffering from dizzy spells every once in a while. The doctor told her to take it easy but of course she didn't completely listen. She still went out to visit the village children twice a week to tell them stories and did some other work related things. It worried Harry but he knew it pissed her off when he showed any concern for the well being of her and their child. It actually caused quite the fight between them just a couple weeks ago.

*Two weeks ago*

"Rose, you really need to take it easy. The doctor said you have to rest. If you keep doing this it'll cause complications." Harry said, trying to reason with his wife as he blocked her way out of the bedroom.

"I'm fine, Harry! God, I'm not some helpless little girl and you can't keep me held prisoner in my own home! I had enough of that from Isaac and I can't breathe in here! I need to be outside." She argued.

"If you want to go outside then fine, but you shouldn't just take off without telling anyone. If something happens because you aren't taking this seriously th-"

"You think I'm not taking this seriously?" She asked as she looked up at him, the pain of his words evident in her eyes. "You think that I'm just being reckless and not taking it easy with every step I take? I'm constantly thinking of the well being of our child, Harry. It's the only thing on my mind every second of the day. I have to be a thousand times more careful and I'm constantly having to deal with triggers that bring back horrible memories, but I can't fully allow myself to feel them because I have to force them away to keep myself calm for our child. I'm sick and tired of you telling me that I don't care about our baby. I'm fully aware that if anything happens to this baby it's going to be my fault and that thought is terrifying enough. I don't need my own husband accusing me of not putting our child first."

Harry watched as tears fell down her beautiful face, dripping down across the healed scar on her cheek. He felt awful and completely understood why she was upset. She was right. It was much different for her and although I worried about her overdoing things she was constantly worried every second of the day that she would do something wrong to hurt the baby. He sighed softly and gently wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"You're right. I'm sorry." Harry said softly as he pulled her into his arms and allowed her to cry into his chest. "I didn't mean to make it sound like I thought you didn't care."

"Well you did... and you sounded like a dick." She sniffled.

He chuckled softly and kissed her forehead.

"I know, and I was being a dick. I'm sorry, love. Now let's go outside hmm? The roses are finally in bloom."

Rose looked up at her husband with a soft smile and lightly kissed his lips before following him out into the guarded.

*Present*

"I know my limits, Harry. Going to the village twice a week isn't overdoing it... but I promise I'll rest when we get home. This little one has been moving around quite a bit lately and I'm exhausted." Rose said as she laid her head on his shoulder.

Harry smiled softly and nodded, kissing her head. When they arrived he helped her up to their bedroom and helped her get ready for bed. Since she had such a hard time bending over he often helped her with her shoes or anything else she needed. She finally laid down and rubbed her swollen belly, laughing softly as she felt their child kick her hand again.

"Is the baby kicking?" Harry asked with a smile as he laid down next to her and placed his hand on her belly.

She positioned his hand to the right spot then smiled softly as she watched his face light up. He always loved when the baby kicked and he could feel his or her tiny foot under his palm. It made him so much more excited to meet their child and hold the little human in his arms. 

Rose giggled softly as Harry leaned forwards to kiss her belly and talk to their little one like he often did. He was always down there telling their child that he loved them and stories about how we grew up together and fell in love. It was adorable. She gently played with his hair and he eventually dozed off with his head resting on her belly. She followed shortly after but it didn't last very long until she felt a sharp pain in her stomach followed by wetness between her legs. Harry woke up to her whimpers of pain and furrowed his brows when he saw that the bed was wet.

"Harry, get the doctor. I think it's time." Rose breathed out.

"Shit. Okay. I'll get him. Just stay calm okay? Stay calm. Breathe." Harry said in a rush, seeming more panicked than she was.

"I'm fine! Just go!"

"Right. I'll be back."

Rose watched as her husband ran out of the room in search of anyone who could fetch the doctor so he could return to his wife's side. When he returned she was sweating and trying to breathe through another contraction. The midwife arrived first since she was in the castle and she got some cold damp cloths to place on her forehead and helped prepare the room.

Harry remained by her side the whole time, holding her hand and giving her kisses to remind her of how good she was doing. When the time finally came to push her screams of pain killed him, but he also knew this time it was a good kind of pain. 

After what seemed like hours the new little Prince was born. He looked more like Rose, but when his eyes finally opened the new parents saw flecks of green in the dark blue color that all babies were born with.

"He's beautiful." Rose sniffled, feeling exhausted after hours of labor.

"Yeah. He is." Harry said, looking down at their son with watery eyes.

He was absolutely perfect.

Two Years Later

"Charles, slow down, honey." Rose called as she walked beside Harry while their little two year old ran ahead up to the front doors of the castle.

"He's not listening as usual. So much like his mother." Harry teased, only to get hit in the chest.

He laughed and put his hand over the spot as if it hurt him, but of course it didn't. He knew his son was just excited to see his grandparents and aunt in London. They hadn't seen Harry's family in almost a year so it was nice to take the trip over to visit his family and celebrate his sister's first child. She had welcomed a baby girl a couple months ago so of course Rose demanded they go visit so she could see her niece.

Harry's family greeted them in the entrance of the castle and he smiled when Rose made a beeline for the bundle in Gemma's arms before speaking to anyone else. They had been talking about having another child soon and he was sure that after this she would want to get right on that. Not that he minded one bit. Making the baby was the fun part after all.

After an afternoon spent catching up with family they all went to bed, little Charles snuggled up in the bed between his parents of course. He quite enjoyed being in the middle of them but he was definitely more of a mummys boy than anything. Rose loved his clinginess and welcomed his cuddles each time he came over to her. She smiled softly as he snuggled into her chest and kissed his head gently.

"I want another one." She said to her husband who chuckled and smiled.

"As you wish, my love. But first you need to get our son to stop sleeping in our bed so we can have some privacy." He reminded her.

"But he's just so sweet when he comes in all sleepy and wanting cuddles from his mum." She pouted.

"I know. All I'm saying is that we move him back to his room after he falls asleep so we can have our alone time. I would never ask you to stop letting our son come to us when he needs us."

Rose smiled softly and nodded, happy that he saw it that way as well. They had all gone through so much lately and Charles was the light of their lives. He was the happy ending to a year of torment.

Harry watched as his wife knelt down to show their son his cousin and couldn't help but think about how lucky he was. Their lives had been rough up until this point and they basically got nothing but thorns... 

but this... 

His little family...

They were his rose.

Beautiful and perfect.


End file.
